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Frank Haith Adds Dave Leitao To Missouri's Assistant Coaching Staff

2012-06-16T19:50:04Z

Missouri lost one of its best assistant coaches when Ernie Nestor decided to take a similar position on the Navy coaching staff earlier this month.

The process of looking for Nestor's successor ended Friday when the athletic department announced the hiring of 52-year old Dave Leitao. The former head coach of Northeastern, DePaul and Virginia will join an assistant staff that includes Associate Head Coach Tim Fuller and new assistant Ryan Miller.

After spending one year as a head coach in the NBA's Developmental League, Leitao returns to the college ranks where he had moderate success as a head coach, but won a national championship as a member of the 1998-1999 University of Connecticut coaching staff.

Leitao is said to be an excellent recruiter, especially in his time as an assistant at Connecticut. After a year away from the college game, Leitao will try to help replace former assistant Issac Chew's recruiting expertise.

Coach Frank Haith was said to be looking for an expert recruiter like Leitao to replace Nestor and Chew, and expanded on that thought in a statement released by the University on Friday morning.

"Dave brings a wealth of knowledge to our program," Haith said. "He was mentored by one of college basketball’s all-time greats in Coach Calhoun and he helped recruit key pieces for their NCAA Championship team in 1998-99. We are excited to have Dave join our family here at Mizzou."

Leitao is excited to get back into the college game, especially with a program that has had a lot of recent success like Mizzou has.

"I really appreciate this opportunity to join Coach Haith's staff here at Missouri and can't imagine a better place to continue my coaching career than here at Mizzou," Leitao said in a statement Friday morning.

Missouri may find it tough to adjust to two new assistants a year after getting a new head coach, but it seems as if Frank Haith has found more than adequate replacements. And with a wealth of new bodies on the roster, Missouri could have a surprisingly successful season like the one they had last year.

Dorial Green-Beckham Joins Potentially Stellar Missouri Offense Led By James Franklin

2012-06-13T12:00:44Z

With the arrival of Dorial Green-Beckham on the campus of the University of Missouri, excitement is ramping up in advance of the Tigers' first season in the SEC. As the move to the SEC gets more real for Tiger fans, it's becoming more obvious that Missouri is going to field a team that is ready to compete right away in the SEC. A main reason for that is the exciting and productive offense that the Tigers figure to have for their first SEC game, at home against Georgia on September 8.

First, the returning pieces:
Quarterback James Franklin is recovering shoulder surgery, but he is ahead of schedule at this point and should be fully healthy by the start of the SEC schedule. The junior quarterback now has a season of starting under his belt and could take a giant step forward as many quarterbacks do in their junior seasons (see: Chase Daniel). Even if he doesn't take a step forward, his performance last year would be quite satisfactory for a quarterback in the SEC. Franklin finished his sophomore season with nearly 3,000 yards passing, nearly 1,000 yards rushing and 36 total touchdowns compared to 11 interceptions. Can you imagine what he'll produce if he improves even a little bit? Wow.

While the Tigers lost 3 significant pieces of their offensive line from 2011, there is still a lot of experience coming back because of the way coach Gary Pinkel rotated players last season. The offensive line returns 4 members who have at least 7 career starts (Elvis Fisher, Justin Britt, Jack Meiners and Travis Ruth) and will most likely feature one other highly rated lineman, Mitch Morse. There could be some growing pains as a unit here, but it still has enough experience and has a obvious leader in Fisher, so expect this crew to be a strength.

The running back position took a big hit with the loss of all-conference player Henry Josey late in the 2011 season, but the position still has some good talent. Senior Kendial Lawrence leads the crowded backfield after averaging nearly 5 yards per carry as Josey's primary backup. Lawrence seemed to be finally figuring out how to run behind the Missouri offensive line toward the end of last season, so we could see a breakout senior season from the speedster back. He'll also figure to get help from Marcus Murphy (returning from injury) and Jared Culver, but past that there is not much proven talent.

The Tigers took the biggest hit from graduation at the wide receiver position, but this unit also has the most potential of any group on this team. Wes Kemp and Jerrell Jackson both depart, leaving T.J. Moe as the clear #1 option for Franklin, but a wealth of players including Marcus Lucas, L'Damian Washington, Jimmie Hunt, Eric Waters, Rolandis Woodland and Ghan McGaffie have a chance to step up and be the best secondary targets for Franklin.

New faces:
As you can see, there isn't too much proven talent on this offense, but with a couple of key recruits coming in at skill positions on offense, Missouri fans will have some exciting new faces to cheer for. This list obviously begins with super-recurit, Dorial Green-Beckham. The #1 recruit in the nation committed to the Tigers on signing day in February and has a very good chance to make a Danario Alexander type impact on this offense right away. His size and talent are quite impressive and there is no doubt that he will be able to keep up in the super-athletic Southeastern Conference. It's really just a matter of how comfortable he gets with James Franklin before the season starts.

Tight end Sean Culkin could also make an immediate impact, seeing as how Eric Waters is the only semi-experienced player at that position on the depth chart right now. There are also two running backs coming in (Morgan Steward and Russel Hansbrough), but the depth chart is so uncertain at this point, no one knows what, if any impact they will have on the 2012 season. This offense isn't full of blue chip prospects or proven commodities, but the potential of the unit as a whole is undeniable, especially with James Franklin leading the charge. Don't be surprised to see the Tigers at the top of most of the offensive categories in the SEC next season.

March Madness 2012: Phil Pressey Key To Tournament Success For Missouri

2012-03-15T13:00:52Z

As the hours tick away until March Madness officially tips off in the round of 64 this morning, Missouri has become the hot pick to advance to the Final Four from the West region.

The most important player for Missouri in March Madness might not be the one you expect, though.

Marcus Denmon and Kim English will most likely get their points. Michael Dixon will continue to be the best sixth man in the nation. Ricardo Ratliffe will gobble up offensive rebounds and shoot almost 70 percent from the floor.

Missouri can count on those players to show up and give a largely positive contribution to their team. The big wildcard for the Tigers in the tournament will be the play of sophomore point guard Phil Pressey.

Pressey was an extremely dynamic player for Missouri this year, leading the Big 12 in assists and steals per game at 6.3 and 2.1, respectively, while running the point for the most efficient offense in the nation.

He didn't always consistently give the Tigers those numbers, though. Pressey gave Missouri double-digit assists in seven games this season and three or less assists in seven games.

He also had some problems taking care of the ball at times this year. Even though he had 10 games with zero or one turnovers, he also had seven games with four or more turnovers.

These numbers prove the widely held belief that Pressey is a very up-and-down player.

When he is on, Pressey is more than likely a top-3 point guard in the nation, but when he is off he can actually be a liability for a team that needs good guard play to succeed.

The good news for Missouri is that Pressey has been incredible recently, most notably in the Big 12 Tournament.

Over the last nine games, the 5-10 point guard is averaging almost 11 points and 8 assists per game while shooting 46 percent from the floor. Those numbers are what you dream of when you think of a perfect college point guard, but Pressey has shown that he can actually be better than that.

There are five-minute stretches of games where the sophomore just takes over, lulling defenses to sleep with crossovers and making them pay with no-look passes. His 3-point stroke has also improved immensely over the last half of the season, meaning defenders can no longer cheat to the hoop.

The Tigers will need this dominant performance from Pressey to get by teams like Michigan State and Marquette on the way to the Final Four. If the Tigers goals are set even higher than that (which they are), they will have to worry about beating the nation's best in Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio State and Syracuse.

The thing to take away from all this is that Missouri really has the talent to win the whole thing. They just need Phil Pressey to play at the top of his game for the next three weeks. If that happens, the Tigers could be cutting down the nets in New Orleans in early April.

How awesome is that, Tiger fans?

For more on the 2012 NCAA Tournament bracket, stay with SB Nation's Selection Sunday StoryStream, and stick around SB Nation's NCAA Tournament hub for a complete printable NCAA Tournament bracket and tons of analysis on who was snubbed, who got the best bracket, and who will make it all the way to New Orleans and the Final Four.

March Madness 2012: Missouri Ready To Make History In NCAA Tournament

2012-03-14T13:00:50Z

Initial reactions to Missouri's 2-seed in the West region were largely not positive among Tiger fans. After winning the Big 12 tournament and finishing the regular season with 30 wins, Missouri fans felt they deserved to be on the top line.

But after Tiger faithful took a step back and analyzed the bracket and the draw that their team got, the situation couldn't have been much better.

They avoided the powerhouse Kentucky team. They also avoided bad matchups like Kansas State, North Carolina and Cincinnati.

Instead, the Tigers will most likely have to win their opening round game against 15^th seeded Norfolk State, a wildly inconsistent Florida team and a lesser version of themselves in Marquette.

It's not just the draw that is on the Tigers' side this year. Here are four other things going Missouri's way.

Experience

The Tigers have probably their best chance to make a Final Four in program history, mostly because they have talent, but also because they know what to expect in March.

Kim English and Marcus Denmon, Missouri's two leaders, were both key members of the 2009 Elite Eight team and know just what it takes to get back there.

Missouri's group of seniors have been playing with each other for a long time and are playing as together as they ever have in the past month. The incredible chemistry is impossible to miss and they all seem incredibly focused on making a trip to New Orleans in a little more than two weeks.

Guard play

Most agree that good guard play is one of the main things you need to have success in the NCAA Tournament. Missouri may have the best group of guards in the country.

Denmon and English are both elite scorers. Phil Pressey and Michael Dixon are the best pair of point guards in the nation. Matt Pressey is a glue guy who brings much-needed defense to a group that isn't great in that area.

Overall, there is no weakness in this group of five players. What else could you ask for?

Fast Offense

Another thing to check for when looking for a good tournament pick is how explosive a team's offense is. You wont find a more explosive offense in the nation than Missouri's.

We covered this with the guards, but the Tigers also get elite play from Ricardo Ratliffe in the post. The senior from Hampton, Va. receives a lot of attention on the block from elite defenders in the Big 12, but he still broke a school record for field goal percentage in a season.

For a team heavy in guard play, the Tigers actually score a lot in the paint, somewhat due to Ratliffe's play, but also because their guards are not afraid to attack the basket.

Recent performance

Teams riding hot streaks going into the tournament have been known to carry that play into the field of 68, with the best example of that coming last year. Connecticut caught fire, winning five games in five days to claim the Big East Tournament crown before winning six more games to become national champions.

While Missouri isn't on a double digit win-streak, they did win their conference tournament and have played their best basketball of the season down the stretch (minus the home Kansas State game). Even their loss to Kansas in Lawrence featured some of the best individual performances of the year from players in Tiger uniforms.

Over their last 14 games, the Tigers are 12-2 with those back-to-back losses to KU and KSU as the only blemishes.

The dismantling of Baylor for the conference crown may have been the most impressive game of the year, though. Missouri had five players score 15 points or more for the first time in school history. That just shows you what kind of special team this is.

So as you finalize your brackets, be sure to give the Tigers of Mizzou a lot of respect. They aren't a gimmicky team like they had been in years past under Mike Anderson. This is a legitimate Final Four team because of the reasons listed above, but also be cause of their raw talent.

March Madness Bracket 2012: How Missouri Got There

2012-03-11T22:34:32Z

Missouri basketball fans were not looking forward to the 2011-2012 season.

An off-season of turmoil that was headlined by Mike Anderson's shady departure from Columbia, the threat of losing almost half the roster from last year to transfer and a less-than-popular hiring of Frank Haith as its next coach didn't give Tiger fans much reason to hope.

Even with everything that happened in the off-season, the Tigers started the season ranked No. 25 in the nation and were picked to finish third in the Big 12.

Then the worst news of the pre-season came. The Tigers' most valuable player, Laurence Bowers, went down with a knee injury and was lost for the entire season. No one would have been surprised to see Missouri slide to the middle of the pack in the Big 12 and struggle to get into the field of 68 because of all the adversity they had faced.

A funny thing happened though. Missouri's players decided to put the past behind them, not worry about what they couldn't control and buy in 100 percent to what new coach Frank Haith was selling.

The early injury to Bowers forced Haith to adjust the team's playing style before they played a game. The new head coach decided to move to a 4-guard system, which put a lot of doubt into college basketball experts' minds about the Tigers' ability to win games in the physical Big 12.

The experts were wrong. It worked.

Even with an inherent significant size disadvantage against nearly every team they faced this season, the Tigers were able to evolve into possibly the most efficient offensive team in the nation.

They used incredible quickness from point guards Phil Pressey and Michael Dixon, incredible unselfishness from the entire team and great efficiency from Ricardo Ratliffe to average more than 80 points per game while shooting better than 50 percent from the floor as a team.

The Tigers got those important contributions from their point guards and post man, but a pair of seniors led them all season. Marcus Denmon led the team in scoring and was second on the team in rebounding while shooting 46 percent from the floor. The Kansas City native is a finalist for the John Wooden award, given to the best player in the nation.

Kim English almost departed for the NBA after his junior year out of frustration with Mike Anderson's system, but recommitted to the team when Haith was hired and put together a very impressive senior year.

The Baltimore native scored almost 15 points per game on 53 percent shooting from the floor. He also did a exceptional job on defense, drawing a huge number of charges and making a concered effort to box out against much larger players for defensive rebounds.

The Tigers also got important contributions from Matt Pressey and Steve Moore, especially defensively, but the five players mentioned before are the ones that need to be contributing on offense for Missouri to play into April.

Missouri finished its non-conference schedule with an unblemished 13-0 record, including two convincing wins against California and Notre Dame, as well as a win against Villanova in New York and a win in the annual Arch Rivalry against Illinois.

While they lost four games in conference play, two of the losses came against Kansas State, a team with an outstanding defense and a lot of height. Frank Martin's team was also able to exploit weaknesses in Missouri's defense because of the amount of experience they have had playing against the Tigers in conference play in recent years.

The regular season saw a lot of great moments for Missouri, including a game-winning shot from Michael Dixon in Austin against Texas and a back-and-forth affair in Waco against Baylor, but nothing came close to the last two installments of the Border War, two games that were some of the best in all of college basketball this season.

The first matchup of the season between Missouri and Kansas was one of the best ever played in Columbia. Missouri looked to be left for dead when they were down by eight points with just over two minutes left, but an incredible individual effort from Marcus Denmon to score nine points in three possessions helped Missouri win its last home Border War game.

The second matchup of the year was a de facto Big 12 championship game, played in late February, and may have been even more thrilling then the first. The final scheduled game between these two teams in Lawerence saw Missouri blow a 19-point second half lead before losing a tight contest in overtime. The win for the Jayhawks sealed their eighth straight regular season championship.

Even with the crushing loss in Lawrence, the Tigers came together and became the image of a true team, fighting their inherent size disadvantage and shallow bench. They finished the season in a close second place to Kansas in the Big 12, ending the regular season 27-4 (14-4).

Jumping ahead to the conference tournament this weekend, Missouri had little trouble disposing of Oklahoma State and Texas on the way to the tournament championship against Baylor, the team the Tigers beat in 2009 to win their first Big 12 Tournament championship.

The championship game was competitive throughout, but Missouri held a 6-12 point lead for the majority of the second half and finished the game with a convincing 90-75 win and a second Big 12 Championship in four years. Kim English averaged 23 points per game in the tournament and was named tournament MVP.

The win against Baylor brought the Tigers' season total to 30, but that wasn't enough for the committee to award the Tigers a 1-seed, apparently. After virtual locks Kentucky and Syracuse were named 1-seeds, North Carolina and Big 10 champion Michigan State secured the other two 1-seeds.

Missouri was placed as a 2-seed in the West regional but will play their opening round games in Omaha, Neb. The Tigers get things started on Friday when they face 15th-seeded Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champion Norfolk State.

If the Tigers take care of business there, they will face the winner of the 7-10 matchup between Florida and Virginia on Sunday.

The other top seeds in the West Region, which will be held in Phoenix, are Michigan State (1), Marquette (3), Louisville (4) and (5) New Mexico.

For more on the Tigers, be sure to visit SB Nation's Rock M Nation. For more on college basketball, check out our college basketball hub and make sure your grab a copy of our updated printable NCAA bracket 2012.

Missouri Hitting Its Stride On Way To Semifinal Against Texas

2012-03-09T14:50:02Z

With two minutes left in the first half, walk-on forward Andrew Jones entered the game to get some serious playing time.

Yes, I said the first half.

That's all you really need to know about Missouri's dominating 88-70 win over Oklahoma State in the Big 12 Quarterfinals on Thursday night.

It was pure dominance for the Tigers from the opening tip, capitalizing on poor defense by the Cowboys to go on a 30-to-6 run at one point. Missouri led by as many as 29 points in the win and got two standout performances from their senior leaders.

Kim English led the Tigers' charge out of the gate with 21 first-half points. The senior from Baltimore finished with 27 points, two shy of his career high, on 11-of-13 shooting.

Marcus Denmon did what he usually does: score 20 of the quietest points you will ever see. The 6-3 senior guard shot 9-of-14 from the floor, scoring 24 points while pulling down 8 rebounds.

Basically, this game was what happens when Missouri is clicking on all cylinders. The Tigers looked as dangerous as can be in a tournament setting and look extremely focused on winning their last eight games of the year.

The Tigers face a quick turnaround as they are set to face the Texas Longhorns tonight. Texas looked impressive in disposing of Royce White and Iowa State on Thursday night, removing themselves (at least temporarily) from the bubble and into the field of 68.

The Longhorns weren't an easy out for Missouri this year, as both the Tigers needed a last-second shot to beat Texas in Austin last month. J'Covan Brown averages 20 points per game and should be a tough matchup for the Tigers defense, which has struggled a bit lately.

Still, if Missouri gets the kind of performance it had on Thursday night, there aren't many teams in the nation that could hang with them for 40 minutes.

The key for the Tigers for the rest of the Big 12 Tournament will be the play of Phil Pressey. In the game against Oklahoma State, Pressey was basically unstoppable, both distributing the basketball and taking it away. Pressey finished the game with 12 assists, one away from the school record for a game, and five steals, two away from the school record.

As a result, Missouri scored at a high rate and the Pokes never had a chance. When he is at the top of his game, there are probably only 3-5 other point guards in the nation that are in the same class as Phil Pressey. If he can play like that all the way through March and into April, the Tigers will be cutting down some nets.

Missouri and Texas face off tonight at 9 p.m. The winner moves on to the Big 12 championship game set for 5 p.m. on Saturday

Frank Haith Doing What Mike Anderson Could Not At Missouri

2012-03-06T14:01:16Z

I've had a lot of people ask me if I think that the Tigers would be having as much success this season if Mike Anderson was still the head coach.

That's one of the easiest questions I get to answer.

No way.

Frank Haith doesn't get as much press because of an unusual style of play with its own special name like Anderson did. He never even had any real success as a head coach before coming to Missouri. He probably doesn't have as many relatives who are basketball players as Anderson does, either.

This lack of flamboyance and history of success didn't stop Haith from earning the Associated Press' Big 12 coach of the year Monday, one day after he was snubbed of the official award from the Big 12 Conference.

The award was given to Haith because of his team's unexpected success this year with only 7 scholarship players, but his best coaching job probably came before the season in keeping this team together and reuniting them, forming one of the most cohesive units in the nation.

This is what Haith has done that Anderson could not.

Coaching at the college level is about leadership and getting a group of 18- to 22- year olds to buy what you are selling.

Each of the last three years that Anderson was in Columbia, he was rumored to be interested in taking a job somewhere else. Since taking the job, Haith has preached allegiance to the University of Missouri and proved that he is a man of his word with the way he has represented the school.

Haith has become an expert at getting his players to trust him, as proven by his players singing his praises all season long. That, along with a system that helps accentuate the natural strengths of his players, has resulted in one of the best regular seasons in Missouri basketball history.

If Anderson were still at Missouri, how would the 2011-2012 season been different?

The first thing we know is that Kim English would not have been back on the team. He's made that perfectly clear all season. Laurence Bowers probably would have been gone to the NBA too.

That would have left the Tigers with 8 scholarship players (add Ricky Kreklow and Kadeem Green back). Anderson was reportedly close to getting Otto Porter, now a freshman at Georgetown, to commit to be a Tiger, but who knows what would have happened there?

The big issue that would have still been unresolved was the continued lack of trust on the team that was revealed after Anderson left.

After flirting with Arkansas about leaving to be the head coach there, how could Anderson have earned any of the little trust he had back from his players?

It was obvious that players like Marcus Denmon and Steve Moore were not thriving in the "Fastest 40 Minutes" system, but there is no way Anderson was going to stray away from that style. Last year's downward spiral probably just would have continued.

It's hard to say exactly how much worse this team would have been with Anderson still at the helm, but it is very clear that the Tigers would not have been this good with the same kind of situation as last season.

The Missouri basketball fanbase felt robbed when Anderson left out the back door in March 2011, but in reality, that was the best thing that could have happened to the program.

The Tigers got rid of a floundering head coach who didn't want to be in Missouri and got their under-the-radar guy who has had to earn his praise the hard way.

He's done it and left a lasting impact on the most successful senior class in school history.

Kim English said it best after his team's senior night win against Iowa State: "Frank Haith is the best coach I've had in my four years at Missouri."

Most Successful Senior Class At Missouri Goes Out With Class

2012-03-02T12:45:01Z

In a way, the final home game at Mizzou Arena for the most successful senior class in Missouri basketball history was a microcosm of the last four years for the Tigers.

Missouri jumped out to an early 7-0 lead on the Cyclones, who had won seven of their last nine games before Wednesday's tilt in Columbia. That early start mirrored the out-of-nowhere successful season that this senior class had in 2008-2009.

Then the Tigers went through some struggles. Things never really got of control, but they couldn't put together any sort of run for the rest of the first half and first six to eight minutes of the second half.

Those struggles from Missouri mirrored the sophomore and junior seasons of this senior class. Nothing seemed to be wrong with those teams on the outside, but they just couldn't get the team's play to an elite level.

Then, a run fueled by a diving Steve Moore to secure a ball 90 feet away from his own basket helped the Tigers take their first lead of the second half and they never looked back.

Moore, who has been a much more important part of this team than any stats could show (or than anyone expected), personified the kind of camaraderie and effort that has been shown by the 2011-2012 Missouri Tigers.

After the game, Moore and his fellow seniors took time to thank those in attendance and all Tiger fans across the nation, something no senior class had done in at least the last four years of Missouri basketball.

Moore joked that he wasn't good "at all" when he came in as a freshman and was reduced to tears of appreciation during the ceremony. That raw emotion showed just how much he and his teammates have cherished the last four years.

This is the most successful senior class that has ever been through the Missouri basketball program, but what makes them even more special is that they were the class that got most connected with the fanbase and with each other.

Kim English brought fan interaction to another level on Twitter. The entire team came together like something never seen before in Missouri basketball after Mike Anderson left out the back door last spring.

You can see the love and togetherness it in their play and it was all over their faces during the postgame ceremony. There is such a huge unspoken trust between all 10 members of the team (and 4 transfer players) that make Missouri fans love their team at a level they have never loved a team before.

Missouri fans know how rough it can be. The incidents of the Quin Snyder era and then the 2008 bar incidents remind Tiger fans just how bad it can be, which has made this class even more appreciated than it would have been otherwise.

The Tigers, who are expected to earn at least a top-2 seed in the NCAA tournament, could make the program's first trip to the Final Four.

Or, they could get upset before then.

Either way, nothing will take away from the enjoyment and appreciation of the fanbase that has gotten to know these players so well over the last 4 years.